Carly

Carly: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning: “free man”
Origin: Germanic
Say it: KAR-lee · 2 syllables
Used for: Girls

Usually a diminutive or feminine form of Carla, Carlie, or Caroline-family names, ultimately from Germanic Karl. Despite feminine use, the inherited base meaning is 'free man.'

English names American names German names Names meaning strength Modern names Short names

How popular is Carly?

202492.0 per million US babies

Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Compare with another name

Babies named Carly in 2024308

2024 rank#873 girls

Peak year1995

Total US babies since 188066,374

Carly is fading: recent use is about 37% of its level ten years before.

Names like Carly

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

Carlafree woman · Germanic
Carleefree man · Germanic
Karleefree man · Germanic
Karliefree man · Germanic
Carliefree man · Germanic
Karlyfree man · Germanic
Carleighmeadow of free peasants · English
Carleyfree man · Germanic

Carly questions

What does the name Carly mean?

Carly means "free man". It comes from Germanic. Usually a diminutive or feminine form of Carla, Carlie, or Caroline-family names, ultimately from Germanic Karl. Despite feminine use, the inherited base meaning is 'free man.'

Is Carly a boy or girl name?

Carly is mainly a girl's name in US records (100% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Carly?

308 US babies were named Carly in 2024. Its peak year was 1995.

How do you pronounce Carly?

Carly is usually pronounced KAR-lee.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.